Hilton Head Island

Gullah Celebration

Hilton Head Island's Gullah Celebration

Gullah Magazine
A Gullah Guide to Sweet Potatoe Pie

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Sweet potatoes are a staple of Gullah cuisine that can be traced all the way back to West Africa, where it was a vital part of the region's agriculture thousands of years ago. Yes, yams and sweet potatoes are technically different (from a botanical perspective, they’re not even distantly related!), but it wasn’t too difficult of a leap for descendants of West African slaves in the American South to replace one root with the other. If you’re looking to delve into Gullah-style cooking, why not try some of these dishes? Here are two ways to prepare sweet potatoes as a perfect side or dessert to compliment a Gullah-Geechee meal.

Sweet Potato Pone

Ingredients

2 tablespoons margarine

2 eggs

1 cup dark cane sugar

½ cup sugar

2 large sweet potatoes

½ teaspon salt

1 teaspoon nutmeg

Instructions

Peel and grate sweet potatoes.

Add other ingredients and mix thoroughly.

Pour into greased baking dish and cook in slow oven at 300 degrees F until done, about 1 hour.

Sweet Potato Pie

Ingredients

4 medium-sized sweet potatoes

2 sticks butter

3 cups sugar

4 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 teaspoons lemon juice

Dash of cinnamon

Dash of nutmeg

½ can evaporated milk

Instructions

Cook potatoes until done in boiling water.

Peel while hot and slice butter over them.

Mash and beat with rotary beaters at high speed in a deep bowl.

When smooth, rinse beaters and continue beating at high speed, adding sugar gradually.

When dissolved, add eggs, vanilla, lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg. Beat a few more minutes.